Daniel Djakiew (born 1956 in

Newcastle, Australia Newcastle, also commonly referred to as Greater Newcastle ( ; ), is a large metropolitan area and the second-most-populous such area of New South Wales, Australia. It includes the cities of Newcastle and Lake Macquarie and it is the hub of t ...

) is a scholar, researcher, teacher, and tenured full professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular & Cellular Biology, School of Medicine,

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

, Washington DC.

Research

At University of Newcastle (1978–1983), he conducted research on the evolution of the male reproductive tract as revealed by monotreme mammals. These studies showed that

periurethral glands In female human anatomy, Skene's glands or the Skene glands ( , also known as the lesser vestibular glands or paraurethral glands) are two glands located towards the lower end of the urethra. The glands are surrounded by tissue that swells with ...

in the male monotreme represent a rudimentary disseminate prostate ( prostate evolution in monotreme mammals),Djakiew, D. (1978). Studies of the Male Reproductive Tract of the Echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) with particular emphasis on the Epididymis. Honors Thesis, University of Newcastle, Australia. and that the monotreme epididymis has many similarities to that of reptiles compared with scrotal mammals ( epididymis evolution from reptiles to mammals).Djakiew, D. & Jones R.C. (1981). Structural differentiation of the male genital ducts of the echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus). Journal of Anatomy 132: 187-202.Djakiew, D. & Jones, J.C. (1983). Sperm maturation, fluid transport, and secretion and absorption of protein in the epididymis of the echidna, Tachglossus aculeatus. Journal of Reproduction and Fertility 68: 445-456.Djakiew, D. & Jones, R.C. (1982). Stereological analysis of the epididymis of the echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus) and wistar rat. Australian Journal of Zoology 30: 865-875. After moving to Georgetown University (1983–present) he collaborated with

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

to demonstrate the physiological role of enhanced oxygen availability in the sperm storage region of the epididymis at cooler scrotal temperatures as a prime mover in the evolution of descended testes in mammals.Djakiew, D. & Cardullo, R. (1986). Lower temperature of the cauda epididymidis facilitates the storage of sperm by enhancing oxygen availability. Gamete Research 15: 237-245. He was an early adopter of

tissue culture Tissue culture is the growth of tissue (biology), tissues or cell (biology), cells in an artificial medium separate from the parent organism. This technique is also called micropropagation. This is typically facilitated via use of a liquid, semi-s ...

technologyDjakiew, D., Byers, S.W. & Dym, M. (1984). Receptor-mediated endocytosis of transferrin and alpha2-macroglobulin by rat epididymal epithelial cells in vitro. Biology of Reproduction 31: 1073-1085. as subsequently applied to dual chamber culture systems (1985–1991) to investigate polarized secretion in

Sertoli cell Sertoli cells are a type of sustentacular "nurse" cell found in human testes which contribute to the process of spermatogenesis (the production of sperm) as a structural component of the seminiferous tubules. They are activated by follicle-sti ...

sDjakiew, D. & Onoda, M. (1993). Multichamber Cell Culture and Directional Secretion. In "The Sertoli Cell", Eds L. Russell & M. Griswold. Cache River Press, Clearwater, Florida, p181-194. and prostate cells,Djakiew, D. & Dym, M. (1988). Pachytene spermatocyte proteins influence Sertoli cell function. Biology of Reproduction 39: 1193-1205. especially as they were used to examine paracrine factors in cell-to-cell interactions.Djakiew, D., Pflug, B.R., Delsite, R., Onoda, M., Lynch, J.H., Arand, G. & Thompson, E.W. (1993). Chemotaxis and chemokinesis of human prostate tumor cell lines in response to human prostate stromal cell secretory proteins containing a specific nerve growth factor-like protein. Cancer Research 53: 1416-1420. Studies of

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is the neoplasm, uncontrolled growth of cells in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system below the bladder. Abnormal growth of the prostate tissue is usually detected through Screening (medicine), screening tests, ...

(1990–2010) examined the expression of the

neurotrophin Neurotrophins are a family of proteins that induce the survival, development, and function of neurons. They belong to a class of growth factors, secreted proteins that can signal particular cells to survive, differentiate, or grow. Growth facto ...

s and their receptorsDalal, R. & Djakiew, D. (1997). Molecular Characterization of neurotrophin expression and the corresponding tropomyosin receptor kinases (trks) in epithelial cells and stromal cells of the human prostate. Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology 134: 15-22.Pflug, B. & Djakiew, D. (1998). Expression of p75NTR in a human prostate epithelial tumor cell line reduces NGF induced cell growth by activation of programmed cell death. Molecular Carcinogenesis 23: 106-114. (Trk family and p75NTR) in epithelial cells. These studies revealed the role of the

p75NTR The p75 neurotrophin receptor (p75NTR) was first identified in 1973 as the low-affinity nerve growth factor receptor (LNGFR) before discovery that p75NTR bound other neurotrophins equally well as nerve growth factor. p75NTR is a neurotrophic fac ...

as a tumor suppressorKrygier, S. & Djakiew, D. (2001). The Neurotrophin Receptor p75NTR is a tumor suppressor in the human prostate. Anticancer Research 21: 3749-3756. in prostate epithelial cells and that loss of p75NTR mRNA stability in tumor cells contributes to malignant transformation of normal cells to a cancer phenotype.Krygier, S. & Djakiew, D. (2001). Molecular characterization of p75NTR loss of the expression in human prostate tumor cells. Molecular Carcinogenesis 31: 46-55. Moreover, treatment of tumor cells with selective

non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs A nonsteroidal compound is a drug that is not a steroid nor a steroid derivative. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are distinguished from corticosteroids as a class of anti-inflammatory agents. List of nonsteroidal steroid receptor m ...

(NSAIDs) was shown to induce re-expression of p75NTR in tumor cells and induce apoptotic cell death.Quann E., Khwaja, F., Zavitz, K.H. & Djakiew, D. (2007). The Aryl Propionic Acid R-Flurbiprofen Selectively Induces p75NTR-Dependent Decreased Survival of Prostate Tumor Cells. Cancer Research 67: 3254-62.Quann, E., Khwaja, F., & Djakiew, D. (2007). The p38 MAPK Pathway Mediates Aryl Propionic Acid-Induced messenger RNA Stability of p75NTR in Prostate Cancer Cells. Cancer Research 67: 11402-11410El Touny, L., Henderson, F., Djakiew, D. (2010). Biochanin A Reduces Drug-Induced p75NTR expression and Enhances Cell Survival: a New in Vitro Assay for Screening Inhibitors of p75NTR Expression. Rejuvenation Research 13(5): 527-537. Djakiew received the young investigator of the year award from the Society for the Study of Fertility (Walpole Lecturer) at

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

in 1991. He also received the Distinguished Research in Reproductive Biology Award,

University of Newcastle, Australia The University of Newcastle is a Public university#Australia, public university in Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. Established in 1965, it has a primary campus in the Newcastle suburb of Callaghan, New South Wales, Callaghan. The univers ...

in 1991. He then was a recipient of a Research Career Development Award from the National Institutes of Health from 1993 to 1998. Subsequently, he received the Chaire de Professeur Invite, L’University d’Angers, France (1996–1997), and cited (November 2020) to be one of the World's Top 2% Scientists by Stanford University.Baas, J., Boyack, K., Ioannidis, J. (2020). Data for "Updated science-wide author databases of standardized citation indicators", Mendeley Data, V2, doi: 10.17632/btchxktzyw.2 Djakiew has publications in 73 journals, five review publications and eight book chapters. He has supervised 7 Ph.D. students.

Teaching

Teaching activities (1985–present) at Georgetown University include course director of cell biology/histology across multiple modules for 1st and 2nd year medical students as well as specific lectures therein. Additionally, lectures are given to post-graduate students in the Medical School at Georgetown University. Djakiew was also course director and lecturer of cell biology/histology held at the Prince William Campus of

George Mason University George Mason University (GMU) is a Public university, public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. Located in Northern Virginia near Washington, D.C., the university is named in honor of George Mason, a Founding Father ...

for the GeorgeSquared program (2010–2023), a collaborative course of post-graduate studies between Georgetown University and George Mason University.

Service

Djakiew was elected to the university wide faculty senate, and has been appointed to serve on a number of departmental, medical school, and university wide committees.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Djakiew, Daniel 1956 births People from Newcastle, New South Wales University of Newcastle (Australia) alumni Georgetown University Medical Center faculty Living people Academic staff of the University of Newcastle (Australia)